http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30229181/
By Dan Richman
msnbc.com contributor
updated 7:02 p.m. ET, Wed., April 15, 2009
Internet service providers are currently considering a new kind of monthly bill. Instead of a flat rate, providers like telecom and time warner want put a cap on the amount of bandwidth used by an account and charge when users exceed that amount. some think that "metering could have broad societal effects, including disenfranchising the poor, retarding network growth and discouraging innovation." the reason for the new billing style is because "Cable companies are getting worried that more people are watching TV over the Internet" and consumption-based billing is more equitable. They also say : “The Internet is not yet a utility, defined as a vital service or substance like electricity, water, and heating gas or oil. In a tough economy, it can be eliminated or cut back.”
This new method of charging for internet use could be good for some and bad for others. The article says a bandwidth cap of 20GB would only cost $19.95 per month but a 150GB cap would cost $65. If you happen to be someone that only uses the internet for emails and web browsing, without music and video; a twenty dollar internet bill could save you a lot of money. However if you are someone, like me, that downloads a lot then the even larger subscription might not be enough. If subscribers go over their limit, “the excess usage [is]charged at $1 per gigabyte. AT&T and telecom claim it is to “preserve network quality” but it is transparent they are trying to get the most for their services. As video can be streamed faster through the internet, cable providers are seeing a decline in subscription; this shift in the terms of payment is an attempt to charge users that are getting television content through the web.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Thursday, April 2, 2009
BBC news: "FBI called in over Wolverine leak"
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7978379.stm
An online leak of the 2009 movie X-men Origins: wolverine has made its way through the internet. The movie's set release date is May 1st however a "stolen and incomplete" version of the film has been uploaded to various file sharing networks. According to viewers, the film is still missing parts of the CGI special effects; green screens and other special effects devices are also visible in the leaked version. 20th century fox says the film "was without many effects and had missing scenes and temporary sound and music."
Fox studios has informed the FBI and are working with the motion picture association of America to track down the source of the leak. The studio said: "The source of the initial leak and any subsequent postings will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law." The studio also feels that: "No-one working on a film in any capacity wants to see their hard work released through illegal means - piracy is not a fun thing."
After reading this article i decided to check a few websites myself to see if i could find this leaked copy. sure enough i did. i have posted a link to it and the picture attached to this article are actual screen captures of the leaked film. it is technically 'illegal' to download but according to the link already thousands have grab this copy and watched it without consequence. i am still undecided about whether or not to grab this. i didnt think the others were that great but any way of sticking it 20 century fox is ok with me.
I encourage others to download this and any other files and information they find throughout torrent filesharing sites. they are all 100% free and should be taken advantage of because there is information available through these sites that would not be regularly available due to the censorship of the mass media industry supported in part by 20th century fox.
file link: thepiratebay.org/torrent/4816113/X-Men.Origins.Wolverine.2009.WORKPRiNT.XviD-NoRar
Monday, March 23, 2009
"Information Navigation 101" by Andrea L. Foster
Students today are surrounded by forms of information technology such as: phones, computers and the internet. They are tech savvy but when it comes to the research and information retrieval required by their courses, they can fall behind. As the internet grows, so does the amount of information it can grant access to; because there is so much information, it can be overwhelming and students can get lost searching for scholarly material. Librarians and other university staff are trying to educate students on how to "find, sort, analyze, and communicate information." Many schools like the University of Texas and California State University are promoting 'information literacy' to their student body and are including it in their curriculum.
Many believe the internet is the information sourrce of the future and 'information literacy' education will contribute to the development of a more 'net savvy' community. I think teaching students how to use net resources critically and efficiently is a crucial portion of a well rounded education. The vast expanse of information available through the internet can inform and illuminate anyone who is willing to seek it out. information literacy education will give students a better understanding of net navigation, granting them access to whatever information they desire.
Students today are surrounded by forms of information technology such as: phones, computers and the internet. They are tech savvy but when it comes to the research and information retrieval required by their courses, they can fall behind. As the internet grows, so does the amount of information it can grant access to; because there is so much information, it can be overwhelming and students can get lost searching for scholarly material. Librarians and other university staff are trying to educate students on how to "find, sort, analyze, and communicate information." Many schools like the University of Texas and California State University are promoting 'information literacy' to their student body and are including it in their curriculum.
Many believe the internet is the information sourrce of the future and 'information literacy' education will contribute to the development of a more 'net savvy' community. I think teaching students how to use net resources critically and efficiently is a crucial portion of a well rounded education. The vast expanse of information available through the internet can inform and illuminate anyone who is willing to seek it out. information literacy education will give students a better understanding of net navigation, granting them access to whatever information they desire.
Monday, March 2, 2009
"The Infodiet: How Libraries Can Offer an Appetizing Alternative to Google "
By Steven J. Bell
The article claims that students have become attached to the ease of use that google and similar search engines provide and have begun to neglect their libraries. Students want to apply the speed and ease of use of google to their research and schoolwork. Google has in a way spoiled students and they have underdeveloped their research skills so that the databases and other sources of information go unused.
I can agree that, in my experience, students have minimized their use of libraries and electronic sources. In the few papers i've written, i would use google and wikipedia to find what i wanted to know and build the paper from there. If the teacher requires scholarly sources i would look for things that pertained to my thesis. I think the methods i would use are flawed but i think that the reason myself and other students might do this is because it's quicker.
I think that because databases are within the university website make them difficult to navigate to or find for the inexperienced user and the simplicity of google makes finding information seem easier even if it is still limited. I also think the separation of all the journals in different databases makes searching take longer than if it were consolidated in one search engine. I think it is good that databases providers want learn from google so that they can make researching easier but i think that they will continue to be overshadowed by accesibility and brevity of the information available on the free web
A research paper, in my opinion, is quite a task. Writing something in your own words and trying to express a part of yourself can be difficult and when a course requires it of you in a few weeks it is easy to put it off or not devote time to it. I also think conducting research is something that should be done carefully and thoroughly, and when under a deadline, students would turn to whats easily available to them through the internet.
By Steven J. Bell
The article claims that students have become attached to the ease of use that google and similar search engines provide and have begun to neglect their libraries. Students want to apply the speed and ease of use of google to their research and schoolwork. Google has in a way spoiled students and they have underdeveloped their research skills so that the databases and other sources of information go unused.
I can agree that, in my experience, students have minimized their use of libraries and electronic sources. In the few papers i've written, i would use google and wikipedia to find what i wanted to know and build the paper from there. If the teacher requires scholarly sources i would look for things that pertained to my thesis. I think the methods i would use are flawed but i think that the reason myself and other students might do this is because it's quicker.
I think that because databases are within the university website make them difficult to navigate to or find for the inexperienced user and the simplicity of google makes finding information seem easier even if it is still limited. I also think the separation of all the journals in different databases makes searching take longer than if it were consolidated in one search engine. I think it is good that databases providers want learn from google so that they can make researching easier but i think that they will continue to be overshadowed by accesibility and brevity of the information available on the free web
A research paper, in my opinion, is quite a task. Writing something in your own words and trying to express a part of yourself can be difficult and when a course requires it of you in a few weeks it is easy to put it off or not devote time to it. I also think conducting research is something that should be done carefully and thoroughly, and when under a deadline, students would turn to whats easily available to them through the internet.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
The Future of Libraries
Beginning the Great Transformation
By Thomas Frey
Since their institution, libraries have served as center for documents, manuscripts and art. With Gutenberg's invention of the printing press, libraries began storing there most notable inventory: books. Since then, library shelves have been growing and have served as a source of knowledge those that do not have libraries of their own.
But libraries today are changing. Technology and shared media may be changing the way we view books and other information. Documents and books can now be easily stored in a digital format, but that raises its own questions. What format will they take? What is the most efficient form of storage? And, how will it archived?
As global connectedness grows, libraries may become sources of culture as well as info. In this age, the readiness of data and information is critical. Today shelves of books can be stored in the palm of your hand, libraries are going to have to undergo an overhaul of their inventories. Tangible books are always preffered to reading a screen but as more books are published everyday, there can only be so much space. As more documents become digitized, they will be put into networks where anyone with an internet connection can access them. As technology finds new ways to store information, libraries will have to change to meet these needs.
Beginning the Great Transformation
By Thomas Frey
Since their institution, libraries have served as center for documents, manuscripts and art. With Gutenberg's invention of the printing press, libraries began storing there most notable inventory: books. Since then, library shelves have been growing and have served as a source of knowledge those that do not have libraries of their own.
But libraries today are changing. Technology and shared media may be changing the way we view books and other information. Documents and books can now be easily stored in a digital format, but that raises its own questions. What format will they take? What is the most efficient form of storage? And, how will it archived?
As global connectedness grows, libraries may become sources of culture as well as info. In this age, the readiness of data and information is critical. Today shelves of books can be stored in the palm of your hand, libraries are going to have to undergo an overhaul of their inventories. Tangible books are always preffered to reading a screen but as more books are published everyday, there can only be so much space. As more documents become digitized, they will be put into networks where anyone with an internet connection can access them. As technology finds new ways to store information, libraries will have to change to meet these needs.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Landmark Pirate Bay Trial Begins
By David Kravets February 13, 2009 | 7:45:00 PM Wired Blog Network
The operators of the torrenting website 'The Pirate Bay' are on trial in Stockholm, Sweden for criminal charges. 'The pirate Bay' is a Bitorrent tracking service that connects millions of users to shared media content.
'The defendants are Hans Fredrik Neij, Gottfrid Svartholm Warg, Peter Sunde and Carl Lundström. Prosecutor Hakan Roswall has summarized the charges as "promoting other people's infringements of copyright laws."'
The website directs more than 22 million users to a variety of movies, music and games. The website does not, however, directly host the copyrighted material but instead connects people to chunks of data seeded on the computers of peers.
The trial should be monitored closely by hollywood, and also the music and game industry whom have lost large profits from online piracy.
Online piracy has spread throughout the internet. More and more sites and users are taking part in the distribution of digital media.
Copyright laws are being subverted and, by keeping servers outside the countries with copyright legislature, these pirate websites can evade the authorities.
It is clear that media pirating is larger than a single website and 22 million users must agree that one trial is not stopping the community.
i myself have used the pirate bay. it's a great website and there is a lot of good material to be found on it.
Because of digital media and Copy+paste, one dvd can become millions and organizations like the Motion Picture Association of America and the Recording Industry Association of America have realized that the connectedness of the internet has made there works available freely to every home in America.
The internet has broken down the traditional sender/consumer relationship in the media industry and this trial should have an impact on how the world views copyright laws.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
1 million Xbox Live members use Netflix.
Netflix says 1 million Xbox members use movie service
Rueters: By Sue Zeidler Thu Feb 5, 2009 12:50pm EST
http://www.reuters.com/article/filmNews/idUSTRE5145SF20090205
The Online Dvd supplier Netflix said this week that one million Xbox 360 owners use their movie streaming service. The partnership between Microsoft Xbox and Netflix began three months ago and over a million members have activated the service since.
"Netflix said the Xbox LIVE community has watched 1.5 billion minutes of movies and TV episodes through its Watch Instantly video service."
Analysts and other companies are watching the partnership to gauge the success of the web as a medium for rental and sales of DVD's and other media. Companies like Disney are noticing declines in sales of home movies and is looking for new ways to bring movies to the consumer.
Netflix had better-than-expected quarterly results, they attribute this to their streaming movie and TV show capabilities as well as the new partnership with Xbox.
With the use of a device like an Xbox or other set-top boxes, subscribers to netflix can view streaming media for a 9$ a month fee. This is where Netflix differs from its competitors at Amazon and Apple, whom charge customers for media on an a-la-carte basis.
In my opinion, this is a great development for media and the internet. By sending movies and shows streaming over the internet, the consumer will never have to leave the home to have access to more than 12,000 titles. The titles are also streaming, cutting out the time that would be spent downloading or running to the store.
The ability to stream media through a tv, with the help of an Xbox, will change the way people will see there televisions. For the price of one dvd rental five years ago, now consumers can have access to a vast library of shows and movies.
But how will this affect the producers and retailers for movies? What does the future hold for Hollywood, the local theatre and the silver screen?
Rueters: By Sue Zeidler Thu Feb 5, 2009 12:50pm EST
http://www.reuters.com/article/filmNews/idUSTRE5145SF20090205
The Online Dvd supplier Netflix said this week that one million Xbox 360 owners use their movie streaming service. The partnership between Microsoft Xbox and Netflix began three months ago and over a million members have activated the service since.
"Netflix said the Xbox LIVE community has watched 1.5 billion minutes of movies and TV episodes through its Watch Instantly video service."
Analysts and other companies are watching the partnership to gauge the success of the web as a medium for rental and sales of DVD's and other media. Companies like Disney are noticing declines in sales of home movies and is looking for new ways to bring movies to the consumer.
Netflix had better-than-expected quarterly results, they attribute this to their streaming movie and TV show capabilities as well as the new partnership with Xbox.
With the use of a device like an Xbox or other set-top boxes, subscribers to netflix can view streaming media for a 9$ a month fee. This is where Netflix differs from its competitors at Amazon and Apple, whom charge customers for media on an a-la-carte basis.
In my opinion, this is a great development for media and the internet. By sending movies and shows streaming over the internet, the consumer will never have to leave the home to have access to more than 12,000 titles. The titles are also streaming, cutting out the time that would be spent downloading or running to the store.
The ability to stream media through a tv, with the help of an Xbox, will change the way people will see there televisions. For the price of one dvd rental five years ago, now consumers can have access to a vast library of shows and movies.
But how will this affect the producers and retailers for movies? What does the future hold for Hollywood, the local theatre and the silver screen?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)